Litigants are still resisting alternative dispute resolution (ADR) despite the increase in its popularity among the UK legal establishment, according to a new report released by the Lord Chancellor’s Department (LCD).

The report found that only 56% of the 184 ADR orders made by judges in the commercial court between July 1996 and June 2000 – the last period examined -resulted in the parties pursuing ADR. Of those that did, only half successfully resolved their cases through the process.